A fierce political battle has ignited between the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the detention of Bengali-speaking migrant workers in Odisha, with both sides trading sharp accusations. The TMC has accused the BJP of targeting Bengali workers and "criminalizing poverty," while the BJP alleges the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government is sheltering illegal immigrants with fake documents.
The controversy intensified when TMC MP and Migrant Workers’ Welfare Board chairman Samirul Islam labeled BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya the "falsehood master" for claiming that 335 of 444 detained migrants in Odisha held fake documents issued by West Bengal.
Islam demanded evidence, questioning why most detainees were released if they were truly Bangladeshi nationals, and accused the BJP of an "anti-Bengali" bias for rejecting centrally issued documents like Aadhaar and voter IDs. "Detaining poor Bengali-speaking workers is unconstitutional and a crime," Islam stated, citing a Calcutta High Court directive questioning the deportation of six individuals, including a minor, to Bangladesh.
Malviya countered, alleging the TMC facilitates "demographic infiltration" by issuing fake documents, posing a national security threat. He claimed the detained workers return to Bengal to vote for TMC, urging other states to scrutinize Bengal-issued documents.
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West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee condemned the "systematic harassment" of Bengali migrants, particularly in Delhi’s Jai Hind Colony, where water and electricity were allegedly cut off. She called it a "war on the working class and Bengalis." The BJP, however, blamed TMC for blurred lines between citizens and infiltrators using forged papers.
With the TMC vowing legal and street protests and the BJP doubling down on its stance, this issue is set to escalate ahead of the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections.
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